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5 August 2005
When developing one of the last major brownfield sites in the Centre of Cambridge, Countryside Properties set about achieving the holy grail of modern town planning and design; to achieve high density living without compromising on design or individuality of the scheme.
From the outset, Countryside Properties was keen to ensure the design of the homes made the most of the development’s unique location. Over 700 mature trees form a natural framework to Accordia, and served as the inspiration for the development, which challenges the traditional boundaries of the home and garden and indoor and outdoor living space.
Ensuring the architectural team shared the vision for Accordia was fundamental to its success and in 2002, Feilden Clegg Bradley was appointed as the lead architect to masterplan the development. Keen to create diversity of design within the scheme, Feilden Clegg Bradley joined forces with niche architectural practices Maccreanor Lavington, known for their innovative interpretations of townhouses, and Alison Brooks Architects, for their skill in creating landmark buildings as very specific responses to their locations.
Achieving a gross density of 40 dwellings per hectare, the homes are designed to take full advantage of the plot size. Rather than a traditional garden at the rear of the home, the houses include terraces, balconies and courtyard gardens on different levels to maximise the accessibility of the outdoor space and extend the living area.
Keith Bradley of Feilden Clegg Bradley comments: “We based the concept of the design around living in a large garden, with references taken from the college garden courts and public gardens of Cambridge.”
Where possible the homes have been orientated with a southerly aspect and the homes’ private outdoor space overlooks the larger communal open spaces.
The exterior of the homes combine stock bricks, traditional to buildings in central Cambridge, alongside copper cladding and exposed timber. Extensive feature glazing floods the properties with light and further blurs the boundaries between the outside and inside.
To ensure that the internal specification is harmonious with the design of the properties, each architect has developed the interiors for their own designs, creating living spaces which truly reflect their original vision.
At Accordia, the home designs have been given names to reflect an element of their architecture or aspect. For example, Feilden Clegg Bradley designed spacious, open plan five bedroom villas entitled ‘Air’, and four bedroom townhouses facing east, south and west called ‘Dawn’, ‘Noon’ and ‘Eve’ respectively.
For more information, please contact the sales office on 0845 071 2065 or visit www.accordia.uk.com
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Information correct as at 05/08/2005